With a full time neonatal practice, including night/weekend call,
attending on pediatric services, and his obligations in medical education, it is amazing that John had time for anything else. However,
I can testify that he took on more than his fair share in childcare
and household chores. In fact, after the birth of our first child, he
became the family cook. We decided that I would breastfeed the
children, and as a result I was often “tied up” during food preparation
time. John took over and has become an excellent chef. The family
is always excited to see what he has prepared and wary of my rare
efforts in the kitchen. Now that we are empty-nesters, he continues
to spoil me with outstanding meals and packed lunches. As he has
developed his mastery of cooking, he has become more and more
of a “foodie” and enjoys trying new restaurants. There is nothing
on a menu that he will not try!
He has been a very “hands on” father, spending much of his
free time with the children at their school and sport activities. He
loves to travel and most vacations have involved the entire family.
Sightseeing, cruises and beach vacations have been interspersed
with biking, skiing, white water rafting, scuba and horseback riding trips. We found time to visit our kids when they were studying
abroad, as well.
John has been an outstanding role model for our children, imparting his core values of integrity, honesty and compassion. We have five
very accomplished young people, of whom he is very proud. Tadd,
34, is an emergency room physician at Jewish, University and Jewish
South. Blair, 31, has a PhD. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
from Princeton and is currently pursuing a postdoctoral position
in the field of animal behavior. Paige, 29, graduated from Auburn
Veterinary Medical College in 2015 and is a small animal and exotics
veterinarian in Morgantown, West Virginia. Brooke, 25, has an art
degree with post graduate training at Washington University and
recently opened a letter press business in Louisville. Dane, 23, is a
2015 chemistry/computer science graduate of Tufts University and
now works as a software developer in Boulder, Colorado.
John has guided each of our children as they have pursued their
dreams and faced personal challenges. Our three gay offspring
have benefited from his unwavering support, and we were proud
to witness when Tadd and his husband became the first same-sex
couple to be legally married in the state of Kentucky following the
SCOTUS decision in June, 2015.
He has been a loving, devoted husband as well. I have been able
to have a busy productive career while being an engaged mom and
wife, largely because of his love and full support of my choices.
You should know that John has a quick wit, although he is often
more “punny” than funny! He also loves music of all kinds, from
classical to country, pop and jazz. He does not sing, with the exception of his surprise serenade of 150 wedding guests at our daughter’s
wedding! After his rendition of “Sunrise, Sunset”, there wasn’t a dry
eye in the place. He loves the Louisville Orchestra, the Pops, and is a
strong supporter of Actors’ Theater and the Broadway Series. Many
of our free evenings are spent at one or another of these venues.
John has enjoyed Leadership Louisville as preparation for his role
as GLMS President and is looking forward to the coming year. I
know that he will bring to it the same enthusiasm and work ethic
that he applies to everything he does. He will challenge us all to be
as committed to the mission of our organization as he is.
JUNE 2016
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